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The American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO) today issued a new clinical guideline for the use of whole breast radiation therapy for breast cancer that expands the population of patients recommended to receive accelerated treatment known as hypofractionated therapy.

Analysis of the phase II CONDOR trial indicates that the immune checkpoint inhibitor durvalumab is tolerable among heavily pre-treated patients with recurrent or metastatic head and neck cancer and has the potential to slow growth in tumors with low or negative expression of the PD-L1 protein.

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Analysis of a clinical trial, RTOG Foundation 3504, finds that nivolumab immunotherapy can be administered safely in conjunction with radiation therapy and chemotherapy for patients with newly diagnosed local-regionally advanced head and neck cancers.

Results of the phase II OPTIMA clinical trial indicate that patients with head and neck cancers associated with the human papillomavirus (HPV), including those with advanced nodal disease, can receive substantially lower radiation doses safely and effectively if they respond to induction chemotherapy initially.

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Results of a new phase II clinical trial indicate that cabozantinib offers an active therapy option for patients with differentiated thyroid cancer (DTC) that has progressed following surgery and treatment with radioactive iodine (RAI). Thirty-four of 35 patients in the trial experienced a reduction in tumor size following treatment with the targeted kinase inhibitor, and more than half experienced reductions in excess of 30 percent.

Co-sponsors of the 2018 Multidisciplinary Head and Neck Cancers Symposium announced four abstracts that will be highlighted in the meeting's official press program. Researchers will present the findings of these studies in an online news briefing for media professionals on Tuesday, February 13, 2018, from 12:00 to 1:15 p.m. Eastern time.

A registry that tracks the quality of medical care provided to patients receiving cancer treatment launched this month as part of a collaboration between the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) and the American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO). In addition to improving the quality of care for people living with cancer, the Quality Oncology Practice Initiative (QOPI®) Reporting Registry also makes it easier for medical and radiation oncologists to report quality-related performance metrics required by the federal government.